Cayman Airways has until the end of next week to gather votes in the World's Leading Airline category of the World Travel Awards, in which the national carrier is listed alongside Emirates, Singapore Airlines, Qatar Airways, British Airways and Lufthansa, after it was named Caribbean's Leading Airline 2026 at a ceremony in Jamaica on 11 October.

Voting in the world categories closes on 30 October, at midnight UK time, according to the awards' website. The winners are to be announced at the awards' grand final in Tanzania on Saturday, 12 December, according to the events calendar on the awards' website, which notes that dates and destinations are subject to change.

The regional title is the airline's first from the World Travel Awards, and the airline says 2026 was the first year it had been nominated in the category. The award was presented at the Caribbean and The Americas gala at the Princess Grand Jamaica resort, where Fabian Whorms, the airline's President and Chief Executive Officer, accepted it with Ivan Forbes, Vice President of Airport Passenger and Cargo Services, and Carol Nugent, Regional Airport Operations Manager for the Caribbean and Latin America. The awards' records show Bahamasair had held the title for the previous six years, from 2020 to 2025.

"To be named the Caribbean's Leading Airline in our very first year of being nominated is an extraordinary honour," Mr Whorms said in the airline's announcement of 15 October. Of the world nomination, he said it was "especially meaningful for an airline of our size" and that the carrier was "immensely proud to represent the Cayman Islands on this global stage".

Gary Rutty MP, Deputy Premier and Minister for Tourism and Trade Development, said in the same announcement that "Cayman Airways is far more than just an airline. It is a strategic national asset". Graham E. Cooke, the founder of the World Travel Awards, said the award gave the airline "an opportunity to showcase both the airline and its home destination to an international audience".

How the vote works

The World Travel Awards are decided by online ballot, not a judging panel. Anyone may vote after registering on the awards' website and verifying an email address. Under the rules the airline set out when it announced its regional nominations in June, a standard vote counts once, while a vote from a verified travel-industry professional counts twice, provided that professional casts at least 10 votes; the awards organisation decides at its sole discretion who qualifies.

The awards' website lists 19 nominees for World's Leading Airline 2026, among them Air Canada, Air France, Cathay Pacific, Delta Air Lines, Etihad Airways and Turkish Airlines. Cayman Airways is the only Caribbean-based carrier on the list. The airline's second regional nomination, for Caribbean's Leading Airline Brand, did not result in a win; that title went to Caribbean Airlines for the tenth consecutive year, according to the awards' records.

What the airline has won before

The airline also cites a place among the top 15 international airlines in Travel + Leisure's World's Best Awards 2024, an APEX Four Star Major Airline rating in 2025 and 2026, and gold in the Best of Cayman Islands Awards.

Cayman Airways, incorporated in 1968, is wholly owned by the Cayman Islands Government. The Caymanian Journal (TCJ) emailed the airline on 21 October asking whether any fee was paid to enter the awards, what the delegation's travel to the Jamaica gala cost, and whether public funds met either. No reply had been received at the time of publication.

The 30 October deadline falls on Friday next week, and the airline has asked customers, staff, residents and partners abroad to register and vote before then.